www.hi-fiworld.co.uk APRIL 2013 HI-FI WORLD

REVIEW

Chord’s SPM 1200 power amplifier has been updated to MkII status in the model sequence. Jon Myles enjoys its new powers.

Chord seem to be on a bit of a roll at the moment. Its statement Red Reference MkIII CD player was recently voted a Hi-Fi World 'Product Of The

Year' and its sub-£1,000 QuteHD

DAC has brought its bespoke Pulse Array technology into the sights of a much wider range of buyers – as well as adding the benefits of DSD playback. Now rolling out from its Kent manufacturing base is the new

SPM 1200 stereo power amplifier in a revised Mark II form – with improvements to the already well-regarded original model. There’s no doubt transistor-based power amplifiers seem to fall into two distinct categories. There’s

Chordsequence

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the utilitarian black box look of the likes of Naim – and then there are those that aim to make a visual as well as a sonic statement. The Chord definitely conforms to the latter way of doing things. Housed in the company’s trademark aerospace-grade aluminium casing, the amplifier sits on four circular, damped pillars with heatsinking situated at the back. On the top are four meshed windows that give a glimpse of the innards. When switched out of standby mode these are illuminated by soft blue LEDs similar to those used in Chord’s range of stand-alone DACs. To say it is a serious design statement is doing the unit a disservice. Even those who know nothing about hi-fi would be left in no doubt that this is one serious piece of equipment. Which it is – claiming 350 Watts into 8 Ohms that rises to 750 Watts for 2 Ohms provided by 16 MOSFET devices. Despite all this the SPM 1200 is surprisingly light (for its size) – weighing in at 18kg, helped by the use of a high-frequency switch mode power supply. Input connections consist of two XLR balanced inputs (designer John Franks prefers balanced) and two RCA single-ended. The back panel is completed by eight gold-plated WBT speaker posts. Chord claims the SPM 1200

operates in what’s called a sliding bias Class A/B mode. All drive circuitry operates in Class A and at usual listening levels most of the music stay within Class A.

SOUND QUALITYPower, of course, does not guarantee quality. But good design allied to meticulous attention to detail and careful voicing certainly goes a long

way towards it. The Chord brought out all the benefits in a pair of Atohm GT1s (reviewed this issue) without exposing too many of the drawbacks of smaller speakers. We also used it with Martin Logan Electromotion ESL hybrid electrostatic loudspeakers. The Chord took a grip on the drive units in both loudspeakers in a way only a well-specified amplifier can. But – and here’s the important thing – it did not sound mechanical or forced. This wasn’t just the power for the sake of it. Instead there’s an element of subtlety, shade and light

and dark which is truly beguiling. Transpose these abilities of the SPM 1200 to the end of a good pair of floorstanders and its attributes move into even better focus. There’s enough headroom to cope with anything you can put its way – but there’s also a deftness of touch to its overall tonal quality. It has the ability to reveal just what individual loudspeakers are capable

of but does not impose too much of its own character on the music. Instead you can mix and match source components and loudspeakers around it to take the best advantage of the Chord’s resolving powers. To put it in context, I hooked up the SPM 1200 to a Music First passive pre-amplifier. Together the Chord and Music First revealed all the attributes of everything in the chain – in a way I’ve rarely heard before. What I found is a clarity of sound that is what we listen to music for. Playing Tom Waits ‘Swordfishbonestro

Inside the Chord - a bespoke SMPS power supply.

Underneath the black cover are the Chord’s 16 MOSFET devices – giving 350 Watts into 8 Ohms.

"there’s enough headroom to cope with anything you can put its way"

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CHORD SPM 1200 MKII £8,200

VERDICTA winning combination of power with precision. Choose your ancillaries well and the Chord SPM 1200 is an absolute delight. Very highly recommended.

FOR- clarity- power- true to source

AGAINST - very little

Chord Electronics Ltd+44 (0)1622 721444 www.chordelectronics.co.uk

mbones’ and I was pinned back in my seat by the experience. Clean, clear, rather special. Switching to Arvo Part everything snapped into focus. Move on to The Clash, Big Star, Nigel Kennedy and the effect is the same I found. And then I started moving through my collection, to have an idea of just what the Chord can bring to the party. Perhaps, yes, at first it can sound a little dry. But very soon I realised that is merely an absence of strain from the amplifier. The proof of that comes from the fact that it is so easy to push the volume control ever

higher – and what goes first is your speakers, the room or, perhaps, your neighbours! It took some of the high end sting out of the electrostatic panels too.

The Chord will handle a big orchestral piece with aplomb. Should there have been a better space around the instruments? Were the lower ranges a little muddled? Could we have had a little more from the mid-range? Actually it’s not a fault of the amplifier here, it’s what comes before and after that is making the difference. So if you have your source and loudspeakers sorted then the SMP 1200 MkII will be an absolute

delight. It does what all good power amplifiers should do – providing power without imposing too much of itself on the sound. It is ruthlessley analytical, yet not sharp or hard. In fact, it was doing it so well I spent a blissful few hours listening to Mali’s Salif Keita, then a collection of mid-80s pop and, finally, a long-forgotten CD of chamber music. That gives an indication of how good this Chord is. In an ideal world, I’d recommend buying the Chord and building the rest of the system around it. Unfortunately, we don’t live in an ideal world. But if you have speakers you are happy with, a good pre-amp (and the Music First lives superbly with the Chord) then even at £8,200 you are looking at something special.

CONCLUSIONIt might not be cheap – but Chord’s SPM 1200 MkII does not disappoint. If you are looking for a power amplifier which combines grunt with beguiling tonality then the Chord has it in spades. Worthy of an audition for anyone. Add in the superb design and this amplifier really is something special.

MEASURED PERFORMANCEThe SPM 1200 MkII power amplifier produced a massive 350 Watts into 8 Ohms and 576 Watts into 4 Ohms, massive outputs. The amplifier ran surprisingly cool during tests, due to its sliding Class A output circuits. To get this power sixteen 150W MOSFETs are used

per channel, running from 90V rails from a switch-mode power supply. Distortion levels were low even at high frequencies, hovering around 0.05% at 10kHz, a good result. Frequency response was unusual, output rolling off progressively above 10kHz. This resulted in a -1dB upper response limit of 20kHz, unusually low for a solid-state amplifier; only Naims behave similarly. The SPM 1200MkII will likely have a noticeably warm or full or easy sound as a result, because the ear can detect this. Their DAC64 had a similar response and was admired partly for this reason, combined with clean digital. The response did not change with load; this is not a Class D amplifier, and there is no d.c. on the output terminals. The SPM 1200 MkII measured well in all areas. It is very powerful, runs cool and is fairly light for the power produced. It will have a distinctive balance too, because of its treble roll down. NK

Power 350 WattsFrequency response 1Hz-20kHzSeparation 96dBNoise -97dBDistortion 0.06%Sensitivity 1.75V

FREQUENCY RESPONSE

DISTORTION,1W, 10kHz

www.hi-fiworld.co.uk APRIL 2013 HI-FI WORLD

REVIEW

The back panel has two XLR balanced inputs,two RCA single-ended and eight gold-plated WBT speaker posts.

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